DE 195 03 085 A1 discloses a battery module in which two or more electrochemical storage cells are kept at a distance from one another by means of the fittings which electrically isolate them and form channels for a liquid cooling medium. The fittings thus, inter alia, form a cooling device, between which the individual storage cells are arranged. The cooling medium is supplied and carried away via special channels whose cross section through which flow can pass is designed such that it results in uniform cooling for the storage cells.
The design of the fittings and of the channels is accordingly very complex and requires a large number of individual components, which must each be sealed with respect to one another. In order to make it possible for the fittings to rest flat against the flat faces of the storage cells thus allowing heat to be transferred it is also necessary to comply with extremely tight manufacturing tolerances both for the storage cells and for the fittings, and this is associated with a considerable cost penalty. If, furthermore, it is intended to use storage cells which are not designed to be flat but have curved outer surfaces, in contrast to the storage cells in the document mentioned above, for example cylindrical storage cells, then the problems relating to the manufacturer tolerances become even more important. This may even lead to production no longer being possible with an acceptable degree of effort, at least in the case of cylindrical storage cells.
Furthermore, batteries are known from the general prior art which are cooled by means of air as the cooling medium. Batteries such as these are described, for example, in DE 32 24 161 A1 and DE 100 03 247 A1.
Feed devices, such as fans or the like, are in each case required to feed the air as a cooling medium, and disadvantageously result in considerable noise being emitted. Furthermore, for some battery types, the cooling performance which can be achieved by means of the air is not sufficient, when the highly dynamic changes take place between charging and discharging, in particular when charging with very heavy currents, for example for storage of braking recuperation energy when used in motor vehicles.